232.95 Hearing concerning temporary removal.

1. At any time after the petition is filed, any person who may file a petition under section 232.87 may apply for, or the court on its own motion may order, a hearing to determine whether the child should be temporarily removed from home. If the child is in the custody of a person other than the child’s parent, guardian, or custodian as the result of action taken pursuant to section 232.78 or 232.79, the court shall hold a hearing within ten days of the date of temporary removal to determine whether the temporary removal should be continued.

2. Upon such hearing, the court may:

a. Remove the child from home and place the child in a shelter care facility or in the custody of a suitable person or agency pending a final order of disposition if the court finds that substantial evidence exists to believe that removal is necessary to avoid imminent risk to the child’s life or health.

(1) If removal is ordered, the court must, in addition, make a determination that continuation of the child in the child’s home would be contrary to the welfare of the child, and that reasonable efforts, as defined in section 232.102, have been made to prevent or eliminate the need for removal of the child from the child’s home.

(2) The court’s determination regarding continuation of the child in the child’s home, and regarding reasonable efforts, including those made to prevent removal and those made to finalize any permanency plan in effect, as well as any determination by the court that reasonable efforts are not required, must be made on a case-by-case basis. The grounds for each determination must be explicitly documented and stated in the court order. However, preserving the safety of the child must be the court’s paramount consideration. If imminent danger to the child’s life or health exists at the time of the court’s consideration, the determinations otherwise required under this paragraph shall not be a prerequisite for an order for removal of the child.

(3) The order shall also include a statement informing the child’s parent that the consequences of a permanent removal may include termination of the parent’s rights with respect to the child.

b. Release the child to the child’s parent, guardian, or custodian pending a final order of disposition.

c. Authorize a physician or hospital to provide medical or surgical procedures if such procedures are necessary to safeguard the child’s life or health.

3. The court shall make and file written findings as to the grounds for granting or denying an application under this section.

4. If the court orders the child removed from the home pursuant to subsection 2, paragraph “a”, the court shall hold a hearing to review the removal order within six months unless a dispositional hearing pursuant to section 232.99 has been held.

[C79, 81, §232.95]

84 Acts, ch 1279, §13; 86 Acts, ch 1186, §8; 87 Acts, ch 159, §2; 98 Acts, ch 1190, §8; 2000 Acts, ch 1067, §8; 2001 Acts, ch 135, §15

[Subsection 2, paragraphs b and c, were inadvertently omitted in the 2001 Code Supplement and 2003 Code]

2004 Acts, ch 1101, §28

Referred to in §232.44, 232.78, 232.96, 232.104, 232B.6, 600A.7